Pablo Lopez Injury: Excellent in final rehab start

Lopez (shoulder) pitched 5.2 scoreless innings in a rehab start with Triple-A St. Paul on Sunday, allowing four hits and one walk while striking out seven batters.

Lopez was sharp in what will likely be his final rehab outing, giving up just one hard-hit ball. He topped out at 95.6 miles per hour and averaged 93.9 mph with his fastball. Lopez totaled 82 pitches in the outing, so he appears set to handle something close to a normal workload upon his activation from the 60-day injured list. Assuming the Twins are satisfied with Lopez's condition coming out of Sunday's appearance, he'll likely line up to make a start against the Royals on the road next weekend.